The preventing Australian football injuries with exercise (PAFIX) study : a group randomised controlled trial

C. Finch, David Lloyd, Bruce Elliott

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    24 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Background: Knee injuries are a major injury concern forAustralian Football players and participants of many othersports worldwide. There is increasing evidence fromlaboratory and biomechanically focused studies about thelikely benefit of targeted exercise programmes to preventknee injuries. However, there have been few internationalstudies that have evaluated the effectiveness of suchprogrammes in the real-world context of community sportthat have combined epidemiological, behavioural andbiomechanical approaches.Objective: To implement a fully piloted and testedexercise training intervention to reduce the number offootball-related knee injuries. In so doing, to evaluate theintervention’s effectiveness in the real-world context ofcommunity football and to determine if the underlyingneural and biomechanical training adaptations areassociated with decreased risk of injury.Setting: Adult players from community-level AustralianFootball clubs in two Australian states over the 2007–08playing seasons.Methods: A group-clustered randomised controlled trialwith teams of players randomly allocated to either acoach-delivered targeted exercise programme or usualbehaviour (control). Epidemiological component: fieldbasedinjury surveillance and monitoring of training/gameexposures. Behavioural component: evaluation of playerand coach attitudes, knowledge, behaviours and compliance,both before and after the intervention isimplemented. Biomechanical component: biomechanical,game mobility and neuromuscular parameters assessedto determine the fundamental effect of training on thesefactors and injury risk.Outcome measures: The rate and severity of injury inthe intervention group compared with the control group.Changes, if any, in behavioural components. Processevaluation: coach delivery factors and likely sustainability.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)207
    JournalInjury Prevention
    Volume15
    Issue number3
    Publication statusPublished - 2009

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